Laser 4000 European Championships at Fraglia Vela Riva, Lake Garda

by Elena Giolai 24 Jun 2012 08:06 BST 20-23 June 2012

Boyde Martin and Penny Hooper crowned champions

After 11 races the Laser 4000 European Championships concluded today at Fraglia Vela Riva. Four days of intense sailing took place which saw the leadership bounce back and forth and end with a nail-biting final race.

Italians Lorenzo Radice-Mauro Dell'Oro (Centro Formazione Velica Skiff), started well and held the lead on the first 2 days but were overtaken first by the French crew of Michael Duflos-Anthony Scouarmec on the third day and then by Brits Boyde Martin-Penny Hooper who came from behind to take the championship by just one point over the French. The Italians had to make do with the bronze with their co-nationals and current Italian Champions Anna Ferrari-Andrea Cavaglieri (Centro Formazione Velica Skiff), missing the podium by just one point.

11 races were held and the three worst were thrown out so the turnaround in the classification was only evident on the last day, the only day with winds from the north followed by a powerful thunderstorm in the morning. The start of the final day's races were held up slightly because of the strong winds which eventually subsided falling to 16 knots for the last race. The northerly winds favoured in particular Ferrari-Cavaglieri who took first and a 2nd bringing them up near the medals.

Rewarded for their consistency were the new European Laser 4000 Champions Boyde Martin-Penny Hooper who were always convincing especially on the last 2 days. Their results for Friday and Saturday were 1-1-2-3-1 which took them to the top of the leaderboard at the expense of the French team of Duflos-Scouarmec, who were in the lead but were penalized today with a 12-4 giving the Brits the opportunity to overtake them.

Despite the lower than expected numbers, this Championship turned out to be an exciting event. Trentino Garda has once again proved that it is an exceptional location for sailing with the maximum number of races completed- a factor that gives participants the knowledge that they will not be disappointed with few races due to lack of wind. The staff of Fraglia Vela Riva were once again happy to offer their guests excellent racing conditions along with the services of Riva del Garda and the surrounding area who are always involved in providing the best sporting holiday in every sense.

A full photo gallery can be found here.

Overall Results:

Pos	Sail No	Helm & Crew	R1	R2	R3	R4	R5	R6	R7	R8	R9	R10	R11	Pts
1	GBR 4597	Boyde Martin, Penny Hooper, Guernsey Yacht Club	2	2	-5	4	-5	-6	1	1	2	3	1	16
2	FRA 4604	Michael Duflos, Anthony Scouarmec, yacht club de carnac	-6	-7	2	1	1	1	5	2	1	-12	4	17
3	ITA 4337	Radice Lorenzo, Dell'Oro Mauro, Centro Formazione Velica Skiff	1	-6	1	3	3	-5	3	-7	4	4	5	24
4	ITA 4538	Ferrari Anna, Andrea Cavaglieri, CFVSkiffsailing	5	4	3	5	-6	-8	2	3	-8	1	2	25
5	GBR 4682	Reynolds John, Howell Fran, Grafham Water S. C.	-11	3	4	-7	4	3	6	4	3	2	-11	29
6	GBR 4471	Patience Stewart, Persson Jenny, Berliner Yacht Club	-8	1	8	2	2	2	(dnc)	(dnc)	5	7	3	30
7	GBR 4343	Heffernan Neil, Morrison Jo, QMSC	3	-10	7	6	-12	7	4	-10	7	5	7	46
8	ITA 4580	Canese Massimo, Ciotti Marc o, Circeo Yacht Vela Club	(dnf)	-12	6	8	8	4	10	6	6	6	-12	54
9	GBR 4506	Domaille Mark, LangleyDomaile, Rock	4	9	9	10	9	-11	-11	5	(dnf)	10	9	65
10	GBR 4455	Hopkins Steve, Harris Oli, Northampton SC	(dnf)	5	-11	-11	10	9	9	9	10	8	8	68
11	GBR 4425	Allen Brian, Allen Claire, Brightlingsea sailing club	10	8	12	9	7	10	-13	8	9	(dns)	(dnc)	73
12	ITA 4594	Bruni Matteo, Orsini Martina, Skiffsailing	7	11	-13	12	(dnc)	-13	12	11	12	9	6	80
13	ITA 4264	Di Palma Luca, Tagliabue Tania, circolo velico toscolano	9	(dnc)	10	-13	13	-14	7	12	13	11	10	85
14	FRA 4518	Gérard Camlong, Bernhard Gleizes, CV Sanguinet	12	(dnc)	(dnc)	14	11	12	8	13	11	(dnc)	dnc	96